UN 2025 report warns of ‘escalating’ worsening hunger crisis in Africa

While global hunger trends appear to be improving, a new report from the United Nations has drawn attention to a worsening situation in Africa, where food insecurity is on the rise.

The report estimates that by the end of this decade, approximately 512 million people around the world will still suffer from undernourishment, with 60 percent of them living on the African continent.

The alarming figures were presented at the African Union’s Global Food Systems Summit held in Ethiopia. Addressing participants via video, UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged for urgent and united action.

He stressed that food must never be used “as a weapon of war,” adding his voice to growing concerns about the scale of the crisis facing millions of Africans.

Currently, over 280 million people across Africa are living with malnutrition. The African Union Commission Chairperson, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, cited climate shocks, persistent conflict, and economic instability as major contributors to the continent’s deteriorating food systems.

“Fifty-two million Africans face food insecurity, and nearly 3.4 million are on the brink of famine,” Youssouf stated.

Leaders at the summit stressed the urgency for investments in agriculture, stronger climate adaptation strategies, and reinforced social protection systems.

It has been established that, in the absence of quick and strategic action, Africa would account for nearly half od the world’s undernourished population in the coming years.